“Watchdogs Say Cuomo Is Skirting Campaign Finance Rules”

At the end of a video promoting Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s immigration policies, a disclaimer noted the advertisement’s funding source: an obscure anti-discrimination group called New Yorkers United Together.

The fledgling group, which has financed only the one online video, claims it has no ties to any politician. Two of the group’s co-founders said in interviews that the governor had nothing to do with the ad, other than agreeing to appear in it alongside several celebrities.

But a closer examination shows otherwise. All of the group’s co-founders are close friends of Mr. Cuomo’s. Three celebrities who spoke in the ad said they were asked to do so by Mr. Cuomo’s office, and another person said he was asked by the office to identify others who might be willing to participate.

The man hired to film the ad, Jimmy Siegel, has shot political spots for the governor in previous campaigns. And his website’s gallery of work examples seems to make clear where the idea for the video originated.